


Fabula

by djavjr



Category: Ghost (Swedish Band)
Genre: Incomplete, M/M, plot heavy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-09
Updated: 2017-03-27
Packaged: 2018-06-07 07:58:59
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 22,749
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6795766
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/djavjr/pseuds/djavjr
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>There wasn't always a Special Ghoul, but Fire had always been in love with him.<br/>--<br/>note: due to personal reasons tied to the lawsuit and the drastic lineup changes the author no longer feels any desire to finish this piece</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. a primo colloquio

In the beginning, when Papa Emeritus I and the Nameless Ghouls were first starting, no one knew who they were and even fewer seemed to care about them. As they grew in notoriety, their shows and setlists getting bigger, their fans started to get a bit more curious. Who were these faceless men in black, led by a mysterious yet kindly Pope? Questions and theories were thrown about, very few even having any truth to them, yet most of them being taken as fact. It was not too long before Papa I caught wind of the untrue things being said of him and his Ghouls, and he quickly came to a somewhat nervous conclusion: They would need to speak the truth to their fans and take interviews.

This would be no easy task for a painfully reclusive Pope and his five faithful underlings. They could not risk stepping out and exposing their lives and feelings, and the very idea of being asked a series of questions in a brightly lit room surrounded by cameras made Papa I shudder. And so, he hatched the idea to initiate a new member of the clergy. This most exalted clergy member would never be seen on-stage, and work only behind the scenes with Papa I's guidance. He would be used exclusively for interviews about "his" brothers, and would be given detailed information of what to say while being recorded. Papa I thought it was a brilliant idea, and informed his Ghouls of it to excited head nods and sighs of relief.

There was another problem, however. How would Papa I choose who to be their face, the one member of a clergy of dozens who could represent them as a whole? For many days, the elderly man stewed on this, solemnly walking the footpath in his dying garden or meandering down the cold and dark halls of the sanctum. Finally, after many hours of contemplation, he made his decision.

That evening, Papa I called an important meeting of his Ghouls and the most noble of the clergy. At the designated time, the Ghouls entered the alter room single file and seated themselves on their knees in a line before their Papa. As the elderly man nodded to each of them, they pressed two fingers to their foreheads and out, the sign of respect for their mentor. In the back of the room, the eminent clergy stood completely erect, eyes forward and mouths pursed shut. The room was silent save for the crackle of flames against brick walls and the light shuffling of Papa I's robes as he walked back and forth. To a candlelit room of black figures, the darkness broken only by the glints caught in grucifixes, he informed his underlings of his plan.

"My faithful children," he began, his voice soft and cautious, "These past days, I have spent many an hour in my garden in solitude. I have thought long on a difficult choice that I now have made, and I wish to spread this information to you." He rose his hands, palms upward and tilted down toward his congregation. In response, five hooded heads bowed, and the gloved hands of the clergy obediently covered pale lips.

Papa I waited for his Ghouls to raise their heads again, so they may look him in the eyes as he spoke. "I speak of the complication we have been facing recently... with regards to our presence in the public eye. To false words spoken against us." Disapproving grunts were shared between Ghouls, and the eminent ones rose their free hands to their hearts in a moment of sympathy. "But worry no longer, my children. Your Father has found a man to speak of us, a Ghoul who will tell the world the truth about us."

At the mention of a new Ghoul, the current ones shifted uncomfortably on their knees. They knew that their Papa would be finding a man--or perhaps a woman--to speak on their behalf, but a new Ghoul? There was an air of uneasiness in the room, and for more than one Ghoul, the already small space began to feel smaller.

"I see your worry, but you have need for none." Papa I tilted his head to the side the slightest fraction, withdrawing his hands to clasp them together in front of him. "This new Ghoul, a Special Ghoul, is someone who already has been so close to all of you and knows your capabilities. But..." He paused, raising a finger to hush the unsure whines stuck in his Ghouls' throats. "He will not take any of your places. He already has a job that he takes great care to complete for all of us. This Special Ghoul will be none other than our ever faithful Ghoul Writer. ...I hope there are no objections to this choice." The last sentence was said sweetly, but with the faintest tinge of malice, sending a cold shiver through the room.

There were murmurs and awkward shuffling from each of the Ghouls as they spoke amongst themselves, the news slow for them to digest. The Ghoul Writer, the unseen presence who crafted the lyrics and tablature Papa I and the Ghouls played each night, seemed like a strange choice at best. Sure, he must know much about the Ghouls and arguably Papa I himself, but was he really the best man for speaking about all of them? After all, no one but Papa I had even seen The Ghoul Writer. Could this mysterious man really be trusted with all of their secrets?

Despite the anxious whispers from the Ghouls, which led to pointed looks of worry exchanged by the eminent clergy, there were no disagreements in the room. They knew that the one thing any member of Papa I's faith must do to maintain their position in his eyes is to trust their Father. So finally, after much deliberation, the Ghouls went silent, nodding their heads in agreement.

Papa I smiled then, a halfhearted sneer that barely tugged at the corners of his mouth. He knew his Ghouls had no choice but to listen to him. The entire meeting itself was merely a show, or more like a test, of their faith to him. And just as he knew they would, they all passed. "Very good, my children. I am sure that you will come to love your new brother, and I expect you to treat him as you would treat one another." With a slow nod, he dismissed the clergy and his Ghouls, and exited the chamber so he may begin training the Special Ghoul.

Weeks went by, seemingly with no change, but somewhere in secret was Papa I and the newly initiated Ghoul, the former teaching the latter all that he must know for his new job. The Ghoul Writer, now referred to solely as the Special Ghoul, was given private and direct orders from Papa I. He was handed handwritten documentation of things he was never allowed to speak of and spent days--presumably, for that was what Papa I told the other Ghouls--studying his intricate notes. After about a month of training, always kept hidden away from the other Ghouls, the Special Ghoul was finally sent off to perform his first interview. There was just one catch for him: He had to perform it with Aether in tow. Aether, Papa I's most prized and obedient Ghoul, would be there to watch Special, and ensure he did everything he was meant to. And should Special do or say anything that would be deemed unacceptable, Aether would report it immediately.

All the other Ghouls anxiously huddled around together when the big day finally came. They had never had an interview done before, and none of them had ever seen Special, even after the many months of knowing about him. Now, they would all experience both. Special would take an interview which they were all prepared to watch, and Aether, the least nervous of them all, had already left to be there with him. A field of butterflies made their way through the innards of each of the remaining Ghouls as they glued themselves to the small screen Earth held which would soon reveal their new brother.

Words of encouragement had been thrown to Aether, along with requests to find out more about the unknown Ghoul, but the highest-ranked Ghoul had shrugged off both. Now at the interview location, seated on a well-used couch in a soundproof room, he impatiently waited for the Ghoul he would be watching over. He did not have long to wait.

The door to the small room clicked open, the sound drawing Aether's attention. He turned his head to the door, eyes pointed to a particular point... then dropped his gaze down a few inches to rest at the surprisingly short figure that stepped into the room. He held his tongue as he scanned over the Ghoul, dressed almost identically to him, and came to the conclusion that there was nothing remarkable about him at all. His wrappings and bracers appeared somewhat less worn, the hem of his robe still a clean and crisp black, but otherwise it was like looking at any other one of his fellow Ghouls.

If Aether felt intimidated at any point before, all of that was washed away. He slowly stood as Special shut the door behind him, waiting for the smaller Ghoul to close the gap rather than waste energy walking to him. He chuckled quietly as Special stepped up to him, visibly tilting his head back to peer up at the taller Ghoul, and he extended a hand out. 

Special quickly glanced down to Aether's hand and took it in his own, giving the taller Ghoul a firm if not awkward handshake. He cleared his throat softly and, with a voice clearly meant to sound more powerful than it came out as, he spoke. "H-hello. Who... um... I mean, which one are you?"

The sound of Special's voice surprised Aether nearly as much as the feel of his remarkably soft hand. Though he was clearly nervous and probably a little scared, his voice was still a smooth and relaxing tone that rolled out of his mouth in just the faintest of accents. It was pretty, to say the least.

Stunned into a silence, Aether hesitantly withdrew his hand and went back to looking over the new Ghoul. Rubbing at his palm with his fingertips, eyes behind dark fabric still sizing up the Ghoul before him, he attempted speech. "I am Aether," he began gruffly, "I would think someone would have told you that."

Though it was more of a gentle observation than a reprimand, Special immediately bowed his head to Aether. "I'm sorry. I must have been told that before, and I forgot..." He raised his head again, and set to lightly bouncing on his heels, his voice coming out between anxious pauses. "Aether, yes? That is, ah... a lovely name. It's nice to meet you, Aether. I'm, uh... I'm sure they told you... I mean, I know they must have, and unlike me, you have definitely remembered... Um... Anyway, I'm the Special Ghoul. Or, uh, just Special." He laughed nervously, increasing the speed of his bouncing.

You certainly are, thought Aether, shaking his head. This was definitely doomed to fail. He had no idea what his Papa was thinking by allowing this clown to be their face and voice, but it was not his place to complain. He was sent here just to watch and listen, and that was what he was going to do.

A knock at the door made both Ghouls jump, Special actually turning back to look at the source of the noise. The door opened a crack and peering around its edge was a friendly face framed by long hair. "Oh good, you're both here," the man at the door said before opening the door fully and stepping inside, a squirrely man following him in to set up a camera aimed at the couch. "Go ahead and have a seat," he said, gesturing to the couch with a toothy grin. "Then we can get this interview started."

The Ghouls did as they were told, Aether sitting first and Special seating himself next to him. There was a moment that Aether looked down to see the lack of space between the two of them, but he didn't bring it up. The little Ghoul next to him was probably embarrassed enough, and didn't need to be told to get out of Aether's personal space.

The interviewer checked two microphones he held in his hand before seating himself next to Special, handing the Ghoul one of them as he sat. Special fumbled with it, nearly dropping it, and Aether sighed loudly. His gaze drifted up to the camera, waiting for the little red light to come on. This was going to be a long day, he thought. The sooner it was over, the better.

And yet, despite Aether's previous belief that Special would ruin his first and possibly only chance to speak for his brothers, the little Ghoul performed remarkably well. The interview proceeded with very few hiccups, Special answering questions carefully and only needing Aether's help a few times. Aether himself was a bit nervous to answer questions, much to his own surprise and embarrassment, but he thought he handled himself better than most people would. And it did feel good to be able to speak his mind without needing the approval of his Papa. He could really get used to this.

When the interview concluded and the camera was shut off, both Aether and Special breathed a sigh of relief, neither realizing how tense they had been the past few minutes. They remained seated on the couch and watched the interviewer and cameraman pull out wires and repack equipment, and it was Special who broke the silence between them.

"So... That went well, I think." The smaller Ghoul turned to look at Aether, and under black cloth he was grinning. "Um... it was very nice to work with you, Aether." He stood, lightly brushing himself off, and vaguely gestured toward the door. "You're free to go. I mean, uh... you can leave if you want to. I need to attend to some business with the folks here. You know, with the audio... for our voices... Um..." He paused, tapping his fingers against the spot of his mask where his lips would be. "Anyway! I... I hope we get to do this again soon."

Aether slowly stood, keeping his eyes on Special as he spoke. The taller Ghoul furrowed his brow as he listened, feeling like something was terribly off. Something about the way Special was speaking felt different from before, something weirdly familiar. ...But whatever, maybe he was just tired.

"I wouldn't say it went well, but you were better than I expected you to be." Bowing his head slightly, Aether extended his hand out again, Special eagerly taking it for another handshake. "I'm sure there will be many other times to see you, so long as you don't fuck this up in the future." Special's grip loosened at Aether's words, and the taller Ghoul pulled back his hand, tilting his head back toward the door. "You do what you need to. My job here is done, and I'm tired." And with that, he turned heel and left.

It was a long trip home for Aether, chauffeured by a clergy member in an inconspicuous run-down car. As he stared out the smudge-covered window, his mind was filled with strange thoughts that only led to questions. He began to idly wonder about the Special Ghoul, and where his Papa found this weird little kid. Beyond that, how could someone so awkward and arguably innocent be the author of their music? Back at the sanctum he called home, Aether dropped all these thoughts from his mind. The moment he entered the main hall, he was greeted by four voices shouting at him from all sides, hands pawing at his robes and bracers.

"We saw the interview! You were so cool looking!" Earth gave a few smacks to Aether's back, endlessly proud of his older brother.

"Ja ja, but the voices were all weird so you sounded funny..." Water made a wiggling gesture with his hands, and leaned in close to Aether, dropping his voice. "How does he really sound like? He sounds like he has a higher voice than you!"

Air scoffed, folding his arms over his chest. "He sounds like he is not ready for this yet." Water took a second to think on this, then nodded, agreeing. "For someone who is trained by Papa, he was not very prepared. You should have talked more instead, Aether."

While the other Ghouls began to agree with Air's blunt statement, Fire shook his head, speaking up abruptly. "Forget how good or how bad he was at speaking. What is he like as a person, Aether? Is he nice?" This question silenced the other Ghouls, and all faces turned to look at Aether, expectantly waiting for an answer.

Aether took a long moment to think on the question, unsure how to answer. He didn't have time to really talk to Special, and what time he did have told him that the younger Ghoul was barely worth it. But, he didn't want to say that to his brothers, at least three of whom hopeful to hear something positive. Finally, after a soft sigh, he answered. "...He's short."


	2. servus

At first, Special had seemed nervous to perform, shakily answering questions. Sometimes, he even needed help from the quiet and relaxed Aether, now attending interviews but there just to silently watch. But soon, with practice, Special became more and more accustomed to the nature of the interviews. The youngest Ghoul eventually came into his own, playfully starting a banter or making a joke between questions, much to Aether's approval. Not once did he say something that would compromise his fellow Ghouls, and after a time, he didn't need Aether's help at all. Then, with Papa I's permission, Special was allowed to do interviews completely on his own. Aether decided to still take some for himself, claiming it was more fun than he expected it to be, but interviews would be officially the job of Special.

This job was performed well, to the surprise of the rest of the Ghouls. The remaining elements would often ask Aether when the next interview would be, and if Special would be performing in it, and Aether was always proud to answer. The five men would then eagerly watch videos or listen to recordings of their youngest brother, laughing at his jokes and cheering for him when he shot down a negative comment, but none were as excited to see Special in action as Fire.

There was just something about the perky little Ghoul that intrigued Fire. He wasn't sure if it was the pleasing tone of his voice, or the hypnotic way he moved his hands about when speaking, or something else entirely, but whatever it was, it always brought a grin to Fire's face. Seeing Special talk about them so genuinely and carefree, his slender frame carefully and professionally posed in a chair, gave Fire a powerful and deep feeling of... something. He started to develop an interest in the youngest Ghoul, and every day that went by was another spent waiting before he could see him again.

Months went by in this fashion. The main Ghouls would perform on stage and later, Special would answer any questions directed for "his" fellow band members, Fire always silently enamored by every response. He even, after a while of practically yelling no to himself, admitted that he had a sort of crush on the young Ghoul. Seeing these interviews and hearing the stories Aether shared about the interactions with Special only made Fire that much more interested in him. All the way up until the final interview for the first era of his life with the other Ghouls, he wished deep down that it could be him up there next to Special instead of Aether, if only just to see him.

When Papa I solemnly stepped down, Papa II took over, but showed difficulty in his first few weeks. He would call Ghouls by the wrong denomination, claiming it was too hard for him to figure out who was who when they all looked the same, and grew frustrated when they would not respond to him. He seemed to have no trouble identifying Fire, if only because he arrogantly displayed his symbol on his guitar. The rest--including Aether, who Papa II often referred to as "the Squiggly One"--were a mystery to the older, regularly sauced man.

And so, Papa II demanded a change to wardrobe, to make things easier for him. It was a relatively simple change, going from blank faces and barren clothing to bauta masks and embroidered fascia, but it was an important one. For the first time in their careers, the Nameless Ghouls were allowed to show who they "were," their elemental symbol large and highlighted on the cloth running down along their legs. The Ghouls were excited to have a form of name, even if it wasn't truly much of a name at all, to hear thrown their way from adoring fans. Finally, they would each get the recognition they knew they had deserved, if only the crowd had a word to call out.

There was one small problem, however. There were only five elements, yet now there were six Ghouls. If the Special Ghoul was meant to continue taking interviews, then what element would he take? The other Ghouls asked Papa II about this, concerned that their youngest brother would have no identity of his own, but they were always brushed off. In fact, it seemed like Papa II did not even know that the Special Ghoul existed, and this was proven the day Fire awoke to find one of the Purblind expectantly hovering over his bed.

The Purblind, the eyeless creatures that made up one of the higher ranks of the clergy, were the servants to the Ghouls. They dressed--and undressed--the Ghouls, bathed them, entertained them with stories, and did all manner of other intimate activities with their charges. Because they could not see, they were allowed to be this close to the Ghouls, even when they were unmasked in their sleep. This one in particular had a certain penchant for sneaking into Fire's room to "watch" him, and today was no exception.

Eyes slowly fluttering open, Fire was suddenly met with the vision of his Purblind politely standing next to his bed, head tilted down to him. Momentarily terrified from the sight, Fire yelped and tried to scramble away within the confines of his sheets, banging his elbow against the wall in his attempt. After groaning from the slight pain and rubbing the injury, he tried to calm himself, adrenaline moving through his body far too quickly and far too early in the morning.

Above Fire, the Purblind tilted their head at a strange angle, their empty sockets staring at nothing. At the sound of movement, their ears perked up and they furrowed their brow for a moment as they listened to Fire's less than rhythmic breathing. "...Fire. You are awake now, yes?" They addressed Fire, seemingly unaffected by the Ghoul's momentary struggle with his bedspread.

Upset at himself for getting scared, Fire let out a sharp breath, and embarrassedly tugged up his sheets over his nakedness. Even though he knew the Purblind could not see, and it was nothing they had not felt with their hands before, he still did not want to expose himself. "Ja... ja okej, I'm awake. What's the problem?"

The Purblind smiled widely at the sound of Fire's voice, their demeanor completely changing from strict ambivalence to an almost parental cooing. "There are no problems. An interview has been scheduled for you today. Please get up so we may get you ready." They then stepped aside, traversing the small room in one stride to stand by the tiny closet holding Fire's robes.

For a second, Fire did not process this information, but then it suddenly hit him and hit him hard. Sitting up so quick he made himself dizzy, he all but shouted over to the Purblind. "An interview?! Fuck, no, that's wrong! Right...?" Up until this point, only Special and Aether had been allowed to perform any interviews, and Fire was certain that it was in no way his place to do anything of the sort. "This is... a mistake, yes? Papa is still new. He does not know all of us very well now."

"A mistake...?" The Purblind smiled sweetly, their head not quite turned in Fire's direction. "No, söt Fire, he has called specifically for you. He said it was very important." They felt around in the closet and retrieved Fire's robes and mask, carrying the black cloth in their arms and dropping it on the bed. They then made a beckoning gesture vaguely in Fire's direction. "Come now, get up, please. We must dress you."

Fire was very unsure of the entire situation, looking up at the Purblind and trying to see any form of trickery on their face. But the Purblind merely continued smiling down at him with their full, pale lips, quietly waiting and blithely innocent. With a sigh, Fire finally gave in, lifting the sheets off of him and sitting up, legs dangling off the end of the bed.

The sound of the starched cloth being moved aside was enough of a cue to the Purblind and they eagerly stepped over to Fire, reaching out their hands. They reached much higher than was necessary, thinking that Fire was standing, and frowned as they slowly lowered their hands down to the seated man before them, resting their palms on Fire's shoulders. "Good, good. I suppose this is a start, right? ...Maybe you are still tired? Here, we will stretch now." The Purblind slid their hands down Fire's toned arms and attempted to lift them above the Ghoul's head, huffing quietly when they felt resistance. "Come on, come on. I am not going to pose a corpse. You must do some moving of your own."

Groaning like a scolded child, Fire did as he was told, stretching his arms up above his head. "I'm not tired, you know. I just..." He felt the Purblind pinch lightly at the crook of his elbows and he bent his arms, placing his hands behind his head. "...Well, I'm sorry, but are you really sure this is meant for me? I have never done an interview. It's not my job."

The Purblind shifted their hands about, fingers always pressed to Fire's skin, as they helped to flex the Ghoul's arm muscles. "You are not telling me anything I don't already know. And I can assure you, this is what Papa has asked." They lightly rubbed at the underside of Fire's forearms, pushing their middle and ring fingers against the muscle and vein to relax the Ghoul. "He informed me to wake you up for your interview. He said nothing of Aether nor the Special one, though I have no idea where your youngest resides."

Fire nodded slowly, then remembered who he was talking to, and made an affirmative noise instead. "Alright, I trust you. I know you would never lie to me." He flinched when he felt the Purblind slide their hands down his arms and back to his shoulders, trying to lightly turn him. Grunting quietly, he twisted his body at the waist, stiffened vertebrae popping all along his spine. He then grabbed his robes from the place where they sat on the bed next to him, but almost immediately after had his hand smacked.

"Ah ah, no, you know better than that. It is Papa's wishes for us to dress his children, and I will not have you making me a lazy servant." The Purblind snatched the robes from Fire's hand, lightly shaking them out and then turning them open side out. "Now, come on. We need to hurry."

Even though it didn't really hurt, Fire rubbed at the back of his hand for a few moments, making a less than attractive face up at the Purblind. "Fan, visst..." He muttered as he stood, stretching just a bit more, and turned around with his arms behind him expectantly.

With motions so natural to them that it was like something they had done since birth, the Purblind slipped the robes over Fire's form, gently tugging on the sleeves and adjusting all of the folds of the cowl. Their hands brushed over Fire's arms, picking at stray wrinkles, before sliding down along his back. Satisfied, they then lightly pushed their index fingers to Fire's hips, the Ghoul turning himself back around.

Facing his servant again, Fire stood contrapposto with his arms slightly raised at his sides, his heavy robes draped over his somewhat slight body. The buttons of its front remained undone, the thin opening of the cloth revealing a narrow line of white skin from his neck all the way down to his feet. To an outside viewer, the Ghoul may have been a gorgeous sight, but for the Purblind, all they could see was darkness. However, they could still feel.

Thin fingers reached out, their tips barely grazing Fire's collarbone before nimble hands tugged at dark cloth, snapping together silver buttons. Each snap was remarkably loud in the tiny room, the only other sound that of the Purblind's trailing black alb pooling around their feet as they slowly crouched down after each individual button. Fire watched the Purblind work, a little irritated that he was forced to be clothed by someone else, but a little jealous by how eagerly and pleasantly his servant completed their duties.

About a dozen or so buttons down, the Purblind reached the midway point of Fire's robes, which they were able to feel by the way Fire hissed and tensed his body under their touches. "Hush now, söt Fire. You are always like this, even now after all this time?" They stopped their work, hands in Fire's robes and hovering over him so closely that he could feel the heat from their narrow palms. Lifting their head up toward Fire, the Purblind offered a cheerful smile, lips parted slightly to show a glimpse of teeth. "I am not going to harm you. I may not be able to see anymore, but my hands know your body better than anyone." With that, they lightly pressed their hands down, fingertips rubbing tiny circles into Fire's hips.

Fire gulped softly, and looked away from the Purblind's unseeing gaze. Their gentle touches made the muscles of his hips twitch, and he started to flex and unflex his fingers to calm himself. "I... I know you won't hurt me. You wouldn't put your life at risk for doing such a thing." He chuckled quietly, the movement making him increasingly more aware of his servant's hands. Nervously, he glanced back down to see the innocent face of the person literally on their knees before him, and could feel the immodest thoughts creep into his head. His mind hastily went through excuses, and he quickly blurted one out without even thinking. "I'm just nervous for today! I-is... all."

While it wasn't a lie, it wasn't exactly the truth either, and the Purblind knew this. However, they preferred to act completely unaware, not wanting to rile up their charge any further. Or at least, not any more than was necessary. "...Nervous. Well, there's nothing to be nervous about. You will do well at this just as you do well in everything else." They slid their hands around to the small of Fire's back, gently stroking the tense muscles there and smiling as they felt Fire start to relax. "There, see? You'll be fine. Just be yourself, and remember: We are all here for you." They then leaned in and planted a chaste kiss to Fire's stomach, soft lips lightly brushing over even softer hair.

Fire bristled for a moment from the almost romantic gesture, harshly biting his lip as he witnessed the pleasing sight. It took him a long moment to calm back down, his voice taking on a somewhat higher pitch. "Thanks... I really... I needed to hear that from you."

He didn't want to admit it, and it was likely the Purblind already knew, but the reason why Fire flinched so severely every time they dressed him and touched him like this was not from nerves. It was because, while he knew and saw it was his servant there taking care of him, he secretly wished it was someone else. Someone he had only seen and heard through distorted videos, but who he longed to have in his room with him, in such a deeply intimate setting.

The rest of the buttons were snapped in silence, the Purblind rising back to their feet once they were finished and reaching for the fascia folded up on the bed. They unrolled the thick cloth, thumbing both sides to confirm which side had the symbols printed upon it. "You know, you are being extraordinarily quiet today. Is something troubling you?" They put the fascia to Fire's waist, wrapping the sash around him and snapping it shut, letting the long tail hang to his left side.

Fire scoffed and twisted his fascia around so the buttons lined up in front with those of his robes, not understanding why everyone else insisted on keeping their buttons lined along their hip. "I just told you. I'm nervous about this interview." Before, the excuse he had given was just that, an excuse. But now that he was able to think more clearly, he felt genuine concern for what would be a very big day for him. He anxiously shuffled from foot to foot, grabbing the cloth meant to hide his face from the Purblind who politely offered it. "I mean... what do I even say? What if I mess up?" The words were muffled as he shoved the stretchy material on over his face, adjusting it to be comfortable. "What if... what if Papa makes me leave? What if he replaces me?"

These words made the Purblind stop mid-motion, their hand hovering over the bauta mask on the bed. They went through a variety of expressions, first surprised, then pained, then finally reassuring. "Maybe that will happen. Maybe you will say something that compromises all of us and Papa will have you excommunicated." They picked up the mask, tapping a finger against the hard surface, and ignoring the nervous whine from Fire. "But, I am sure that you won't. You are much stronger and intelligent than you give yourself credit for. And you have to remember that it was Papa who chose you for this."

The Purblind lifted the mask they held to Fire's face, pulling its string back to curve around the Ghoul's head. Finally, they picked up the large grucifix from where it sat on the bed and bestowed it upon Fire, letting the heavy silver drop to hang down his chest. "You will do just fine. I know you will." With a smile, they reached up and tugged up Fire's cowl over his head, brushing everything down and back into place. "You just must have faith in yourself and your Papa." They smiled then, a pleasant look so genuine and without doubt that it washed away all of Fire's worries.

"You're right. You're so right." Fire laughed at himself, feeling stupid for doubting his capabilities. It was true that Papa chose him, and although he still couldn't believe it, there must be a very good reason for him to be there this day. And he was not about to disappoint. "Alright. I'm ready. Wish me luck, okej?" He gently pushed aside the Purblind, but a thin hand on his shoulder stopped him from leaving.

A chuckle left the Purblind's mouth as they felt Fire turn back to face them. "Fire, I am glad that you feel ready now, but please do not forget your shoes." They pointed downward, Fire's eyes following to end up at his bare feet, and the Ghoul remarked with a soft "oh" at his forgetfulness. "Also... There is one more thing." The Purblind carefully traversed back through the small room, opening the door and standing within the doorway as they addressed Fire. "Remember to take your guitar with you."

With those last words, the Purblind whisked themselves out of the room, shutting the door behind them and leaving Fire alone in his room. The Ghoul stood there in mild confusion, a question on his tongue that he no longer had someone to ask to: What kind of interview was he doing where he would need his guitar?


	3. ipsi scitis

When Fire returned to the sanctum from performing the interview, exhausted and embarrassed from his inability to answer questions, it was just like any time Aether came home from being out with Special. The other Ghouls crowded around him, shouting words both of praise and criticism, and asking him a thousand questions a second.

Aether was the first to address him, giving a hearty chuckle. "Well well, you survived the interview. And they didn't even have to change your voice. You should feel lucky." He tilted his head to the side in an act of genuine interest, and he was surely smiling under his mask. "So how was it? How much footage did they have to cut out of you fucking it up?"

All the other Ghouls laughed at this comment, but none were louder than Water. "Ja, we wondered where you had been all day, and here you had been in an interview!" He pointed an accusing finger at Fire, then gestured at the guitar the Ghoul was carrying on his back. "I can't believe they asked you about your guitar and you doesn't even know shit about it!" He laughed loudly, joined by Earth.

"Jo, true!" Earth pretended to hold up a guitar to himself, mocking Fire's body language and voice. "Uhh, I don't know, they just gave it to us. It's pretty fucking heavy." Water cracked up laughing at Earth's impression, and Earth could barely hold in his own snickers as well.

There were too many things being said to Fire, his tired mind unable to keep up with his excited brothers and the less than stellar reviews they had of him. It was almost too much for him to handle, and he started to feel a little lightheaded, misstepping when Earth happily shook him.

Air was the only one to notice that Fire seemed less himself than usual, and shoved his brothers aside so he could stand by Fire, holding the shorter Ghoul up. "Fans helvetes! Do you not see he is tired?" He cast disappointed looks at the other Ghouls, who all ashamedly glanced at their feet. He then turned back to look at Fire, giving him a tight squeeze of a side-hug. "Fire, you have had a long day. You should rest in your room. Be proud of yourself and what you have did today. I think Papa will be pleased."

Fire instantly felt better from Air's words and he nodded, letting out a sigh that ended in a laugh. "Thanks, yeah. I really need to lie down for a while." He shook himself free from Air's grip and looked up at his other brothers, eyes going to each individually. "I'll tell you all about it later. Maybe. You gotta stop being such dicks to me first, though." He laughed and it was shared by the other Ghouls, and after a brief wave goodbye, he shambled off down the hall back to his room.

Once back in his room, Fire gently set down his guitar in its home, a well-polished metal stand he had pushed off in the corner. He sighed heavily and flopped down on his narrow bed, staring up at the ceiling. Air was right. He did have a very long day, from his sudden awakening all the way to the long and uncomfortable trip back home scrunched up in the back seat of a car with his guitar in his lap. And of course, there was the interview. The others were right to criticize him. He did terribly, he was horribly unprepared, and he was more than a little embarrassed by his own voice at some points.

Fire wondered why his Papa would want him to do an interview at all, even if it was him talking about his guitar. For fuck's sake, he really didn't know anything about it. He just played it and never asked any questions. "It must be a joke. They're all just fucking with me." He smiled and forced out a laugh to cover the genuine hurt he was starting to feel. It was true that he was the lowest-ranked of the Ghouls, and he had become accustomed to the frequent mocking and pranks the others would pull on him--most notably Earth and Water--but after a while, even the most kind-spirited teasing felt like real bullying.

His mind started to wander, drifting through memories of practice sessions with his brothers and over long nights where they sat around doing nothing. They really were kind people who cared about him, but... "I wish they wouldn't pick on me all the time," he muttered to himself. "I know I mess up all the time, but I'm still..." He choked on the last word, and he felt a burn at the corners of his eyes. Scoffing dismissively, he rubbed at his eyes and shooed away all his thoughts. Those could be for another time. For right now, he needed to relax.

Out of the corner of his eye, Fire saw his guitar, the glint from his symbol bright even on the white of the body. He turned to look more solidly at his instrument, vaguely considering something for a long moment before walking over to grab his guitar and plopping back down on his bed. Skilled fingers slowly traced the familiar curve of the alabaster body before finding their way to the strings, plucking out sombre chords that rung out hollowly in the small confines of the room. Softly, in a voice that even he could barely hear, Fire breathed out shaky words. "...At least I know how to play."

Many days went by before the sanctum calmed down from the excitement of Fire's flop of an interview, the guitar Ghoul's brothers lightly poking fun at him during practice sessions. It would be many more before a series of questions that had since left everyone's mind was pushed back to the front and finally brought up one night after practice, during the usual round of beers.

"So, ah... Special..." Aether started, taking a cautious sip from his bottle. All eyes turned to look at him, some with looks of interest and some with confusion. After swallowing, he spoke again, his eyes searching the others' for answers. "...He's dead, right?" Immediately after the question, four mouths tried talking at the same time, hands waving about and beer spilling from half-drunk bottles. 

"I wanted to ask, since you would know, ja?" Water slung about his drink to point to Aether, slapping his thigh with his other hand. "But if you doesn't know where the fucker is, then what the hell?" He looked down to his bottle, seemingly surprised he was holding it, and took a long pull from it.

Earth shook his head in a sympathetic way, leaning back in his seat. "Maybe he really is dead. Or, hej..." He leaned back forward, dropping his voice a bit as he looked around at his brothers with bright eyes. "Maybe he's wherever they're keeping Papa I."

Amongst unsure mutters and nervous chugging of bottles, Fire offered his two cents. "I heard Papa I is in the basement. In some kind of, uh... dungeon or something." He felt embarrassed by his statement and took a too-long sip from his bottle as incredulous looks were tossed his way. "Wh-what, it's just what I heard!"

Aether scoffed and set down his empty bottle, reaching for another from the open cooler. "Heard from who? No one talks to you but us, liten obehag." This was met with raucous laughter and hearty smacks to Fire's back, the low-ranked Ghoul feeling even worse for speaking.

"Hm, I don't know..." Air cleared his throat, looking thoughtful. The other Ghouls listened expectantly to him, respectfully silent in comparison to their derision of Fire. "I think I remember hearing this too. The clergy members has open mouths and closed ears, yes?" As he said this, he caught Fire's eye and winked at him.

Air's words changed the atmosphere of the room, the other Ghouls nodding and agreeing with little grunts. Fire breathed a sigh of relief, nursing his bottle and feeling a little better. While anything that he said would be shrugged off as just the ramblings of a kid, Air would never lie to his brothers. Or at least, they all believed that Air would never lie to them.

The room was silent for a long while, broken only by the occasional sniffle from a cold nose or the sloshing of beer as it was tilted back. Finally, after downing his third bottle, Earth addressed his brothers. "Well, if Special is in the dungeon, he won't be doing anymore interviews, will he?" He snuffled loudly, rubbing his hands together. "If, you know... if he's still alive."

As easily as the silence was broken, so did it return, the Ghouls all uncomfortably shifting in their chairs and staring down at their drinks. The thought on everyone's mind was whether or not their youngest brother was still with them, physically or otherwise. More than this, there was an unspoken fear between Earth, Water, and Air. If Special wasn't around for interviews anymore, then would they have to be forced to do them? Fire had already been forced into it, and they mocked him for it, but what if any one of them was next?

The night passed with little more than awkward grunts as the Ghouls finished their drinks, collected the bottles for the trash, and then went their separate ways to their rooms for the night. The air was heavy even as they met up the following morning, all of them looking at each other awkwardly and not saying anything. They just sat in their meeting chamber, waiting for their Papa to come and tell them of their duties for the day.

Minutes passed by in this dull silence until finally, the door opened. Five pairs of eyes snapped up to the doorway, expecting to see their Papa there, but were met with the shocked look of one of the higher clergy. "Oh! Um... You're all in here? Shouldn't you be watching the interview?"

At the word "interview," the Ghouls all tilted their heads, making questioning grunts. They exchanged confused glances to each other and then the clergy member, who was beginning to sweat. Squinting, Aether spoke up, his voice alone making the portly man quiver in the doorway. "What do you mean, 'watching the interview?'"

The clergy member wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead and tugged at one side of his collar, made a bit uncomfortable by the eyes of his superiors on him. "O-oh dear, did... did no one t-tell you?" He coughed into his hand a few times, tugging on the other side of his collar. "Th-there was an interview today. With... with your brother. The Special one."

The Ghouls' eyes all went wide, and a single gasp of surprise and joy was shared between them. Suddenly, five men, all considerably larger than the clergy member, were rushing towards the door and the short man only had but a second to get out of the way before he was run over. He pressed himself close to the wall on the opposite side of the open door so he wouldn't be crushed and caught his breath there. He turned to watch the man-sized children running down the hall, shouting half-sentences in a language he didn't understand, and found himself caught somewhere between confusion and relief.

Down the hall, in a room that actually had a stable connection, five pairs of eyes watched the pre-recorded video streaming from Earth's phone. There, in a set of robes similar to those they all wore, was Special, happily conversing with an interviewer about "his" brothers. And then, just as it had been back when Papa I was still around, the Ghouls all cheered for their youngest brother. The difference this time was that they had something new to talk about.

"Damn though, listen to his voice!" Earth shouted, dropping his phone in his excitement. "Ah, fuck, whoops..." His brothers all yelled at him, Water giving the back of his head a soft smack, as he picked back up his phone and inspected it for damage. Sure that it was still mostly fine, he rewound the video a bit and let it play from where he left off.

Water elbowed Aether in the side, grinning broadly under his mask. "Hej hej, you never told us how young this kid was. He sounds like a fucking twelve-years-old." He laughed then, and Earth joined him with a brief snort.

Aether shrugged, eyes focused on the video. He recalled the various times he had performed interviews with Special, and while the youngest Ghoul had a certain... pitch... to his voice, it was nothing remarkable. "He doesn't sound that bad. It's better than the weird shit they did before, right? At least now you can understand him."

Folding his arms over his chest, Air grunted, agreeing with Aether. "Jo, and so far he hasn't fucked up, either." He still didn't seem very impressed by Special, but the prideful look in his eyes belied this. "He might be getting better at this."

Fire was the last to speak, his eyes transfixed on the video, finally able to hear Special's voice for what it really was. He listened closely to Special's cadence, enjoying the soothing and almost melodic way he spoke. And then he heard Special's laugh, a gentle little breath that faded as it rose in pitch, and he felt the tips of his ears get red. "...I think he sounds beautiful..."

A strange feeling in the air made Fire glance up to see his brothers all staring at him with varying levels of confusion and derision. Embarrassed by his own remark, he crossed his arms over his chest and coughed. "Wh-what? Why are you all staring at me?"

The video had lost importance and was left to play to its conclusion, the silence in the room making the air feel that much more thick without the drifty hum of Special's voice to cover it. As Earth pocketed his phone, glances were exchanged between older Ghouls, questions being asked and answered with just a look.

Finally, Water spoke, a laugh just barely on the edge of his words. "I'm sorry. Had you just said you think he is beautiful?" He tilted his head back, waiting for a response, and teeth could be seen as he threw a grin Fire's way.

"What? No!" Fire sputtered out a response, probably a little too quickly, and Water's grin widened. Gritting his teeth for a moment, Fire sucked in a breath to steady himself before backtracking his words. "No, I... I said he s-sounds beautiful."

Air pointed two fingers toward Fire, tilting his head to the side slightly. "Jo, same thing." His comment was accompanied by snickers from the other Ghouls, the rest now feeling it was completely okay to mock their brother.

Fire shot nervous looks around the room at his brothers, their eyes all saying more to him than any words they could say would. He knew if he didn't do some control now, he would never hear the end of this. It was bad enough that he knew he had a crush on his youngest brother. He absolutely did not need the others to know this as well. "N-no, it's completely different, okej? I only said..."

"That he sounds beautiful," Earth interjected. He added an effeminate emphasis to the last word, clasping his hands together. This display earned him a clap to his back from Water and a brief chuckle from Air.

Fire had expected for Earth and Water to act this way toward him. The two of them were always making fun of him and trying to get the best of him, but to know that Air wasn't even defending him this time cut him deep. "Okej, but I didn't mean beautiful... like..." He searched for the word, any word, no longer able to meet the gaze of his brothers. "...Like, you know..."

Aether hummed softly and raised his hands in front of himself, his left with two fingers extended and his right making the OK gesture. "Like, uh..." He then inserted and reinserted the fingers of his left hand into the hole made by his right, inquisitively leaning forward.

Water and Earth both howled with laughter at Aether's lewd gesture, Water bent over slightly from laughing too hard, and Earth keeping his hand on Water's shoulder to hold himself up. Air crossed his arms over his chest tighter to stifle his laughter, but his shoulders still shook as he exhaled small snorts. Aether was the only one not laughing, and actually seemed a bit surprised by his brothers' reactions, but he made no motion to stop them.

Meanwhile, Fire was shaking from both anger and nerves. He balled his hands into fists and grit his teeth hard, trying not to scream. "No! No, I... Listen, okej? I just meant he... th-that I..."

But the laughter didn't stop, except for the casual off-color remark thrown Fire's way from Water and Earth. Air had raised a hand to his mouth under his mask, turned away from Fire, his way of saying this was no longer his business. Only Aether seemed negatively affected by the situation, and in his eyes, there was a sad look. It was almost like he had something to say, but was too afraid to bring it up.

Fire saw the way Aether looked at him, but his silent sympathy wasn't enough to cover the way his other brothers treated him. There was a reason he hadn't brought up his crush on Special these past months, and this was exactly why. He sighed sadly, unclenching his hands and slouching, defeated. "...Never mind." He then turned and left the room, taking slow and shaky steps back to his own room, still able to hear his muffled brothers' voices all the way down the hall.


	4. aegritudo

The next few days were utter hell for Fire. When he wasn't holed up in his room, away from his brothers, he was forced out to practice with them and listen to their remarks about his "budding sexuality." It wasn't like Water and Earth--and to a lesser extent, Air--tried to shame him for being attracted to Special. In the eyes of their Papa, it was more than respectable and encouraged to explore with any member of their faith, even with their own brothers. They were all very guilty of this, and would be hard-pressed to lie about it. However, it was the fact that Fire had developed feelings for someone rather than just wanting to fool around with them that tickled his brothers to no end.

A Ghoul was not meant, or at least not expected, to ever fall for someone. The love they had within them was to be channeled only in one of two places: their music, and their devotion to their Papa. Having a crush and wanting to be in a relationship were considered childish things that only members of the clergy and those who followed their faith would ever want. A Ghoul was thought to be above these desires, and if any of them ever showed any sign of romantic weakness for someone else, regardless of gender or status, that was grounds for mockery.

And so, Fire bit his tongue and let his brothers tease him. He put up with the pet names and kissing noises from Water, the quiet snorts of laughter from Air, and even the high school level love notes shoved under his door that were clearly in Earth's handwriting. He was able to withstand all of this partly because Aether, despite making no move to stop his brothers, was kind enough to not make fun of him.

The highest-ranked Ghoul firmly placed himself as a neutral party, trying to leave the room--sometimes a bit too quickly--the moment any of his brothers brought up Fire's little crush. He would often pace the halls, just out of earshot of his brothers, waiting until the others had calmed down before rejoining them. He maintained this stance for just under a week until finally, when the teasing started up in the middle of one of their practices, he decided to put his foot down.

Almost violently, Aether slammed his fingers down on the strings of his guitar, the instrument making a brief dysrhythmic sound as it was silenced. "Hey, can you two shut the fuck up already?" Aether's tone was sharp, much more serious than how the often laid-back Ghoul usually sounded. It was such a frightening difference that Earth and Water had jerked around to look up at him, mouths slightly open. Air was also surprised, but showed it with a confused blink as he glanced up from his keyboard. "Look, don't you think he's had enough now?" Aether continued, tilting his head back slightly to emphasize his height as he peered down at Water and Earth. "It was kinda funny at first, but now you're just being a couple of fucking assholes. So knock it off."

It took a few seconds for the surprise to wear off, but when it did, Water burst out laughing. It was an awkward sort of laugh, somewhat nervous but genuinely finding Aether's outburst to be funny. "And why does you care so much? Wait, don't tell me!" He elbowed Earth in the side, the younger Ghoul offering an unsure laugh under his breath as he clicked his drumsticks together in his hands. "Aether... don't tell me you has a thing for Special, too?"

At this, Earth did actually laugh, but he clapped a hand to his mouth to hide it. He was starting to feel very uncomfortable, especially with the serious air that surrounded Aether and filled the room with a tense feeling. Opposite to the quietly giggling Water, Fire and Air were both deathly silent, the former tightly gripping the neck of his guitar while the latter waited to see how the situation would play out.

Aether glared at Water, the lower-ranked Ghoul immediately shrinking back from the look. He took a purposeful step over to Water, Earth hastily stepping away in the hopes to avoid getting caught in the crosshairs of what looked like it may soon become a fight. Then, Aether spoke, his voice eerily calm. "And what if I fucking do? Are you gonna bully me about it, too?"

Water took a large step back, clenching his hands into fists to hide how they were beginning to shake. "N... no! No, I wouldn't... if it was y-you..." He glanced over to Earth, hoping for some backup, but the younger Ghoul was doing his best to keep his eyes elsewhere as he tapped out an unsteady beat with his sticks on his leg. Even more nervous and now starting to feel ashamed, Water turned toward Air, but was given nothing but a long and unsympathetic glare. Finally, he turned back to Aether, the oldest Ghoul giving him a vicious look so cold it made him shiver. "I... I'm sorry, Aether." He bowed his head, sincerely apologetic. "I won't do it again."

Aether scoffed loudly, waving away Water's words and making the younger Ghoul look back up to him. He took his hand away from the neck of his guitar, his body relaxing to his normal composure. "It's not me you need to apologize to, jackass." He lazily pointed his thumb in Fire's direction, all eyes in the room darting over to him. "Say you're sorry to the person you hurt if you mean it."

Water sputtered quietly, shifting from foot to foot. He gave another pleading look to Earth, which was ignored in lieu of a faint shrug, and sighed. "Okej. Okej, alright." With heavy steps, he walked over to Fire, the older Ghoul reflexively tensing up as he got closer. "Alright, uh... Fire..." Water glanced back to Aether, who gave him a "go on" motion with his hand, and abashedly lifted his hand to the back of his neck. "Um... Fire, I... I'm sorry. For like... teasing you and shit."

The other Ghouls in the room were quiet, watching the awkward apology with varying degrees of interest. Aether was drumming his fingers on the body of his guitar, patiently waiting for Water to continue. Air pretended like he didn't care, fiddling with the knobs on his keyboard but being respectful enough to not play anything. Earth was still beating out a rhythm with his sticks, but had turned to see how Fire would react, eyes darting between his brothers. Meanwhile, Fire cautiously crossed his arms over his chest, trying to look disappointed in his brother's actions toward him.

After a particularly long moment of silence, Water coughed quietly, biting at the inside of his cheek as he thought of his next words. "It's cool that you has... a crush or whatever with Special. I just thought it was kinda funny, but... ja... okej, I'm sorry." He bowed his head for a moment and went silent, scratching the back of his neck.

Fire narrowed his eyes, but under his mask he was smiling. "Alright... I guess I forgive you. It had seem like you mean it." He sighed happily and turned away from Water, putting his hands back up to the strings of his guitar.

Pleased by the apology, Aether nodded and made an approving sound. He lifted his hands up and clapped twice, slow and loud. "Alright, alright, now that we've cleared this up, we can get back to practice." He raised a hand in the air, making a circular motion with his first two fingers as the other Ghouls got back to their positions. "From the top, boys!"

Practice continued on without a hitch, Water and Earth avoiding Fire like their lives depended on it, the former trying to play his bass as quietly as he could as a form of apology to the rest. When they had all completed their exercises, they ran through a few half-written chords that had been handed to them earlier that week by one of the eminent clergy. Apparently, these handwritten pages of messy tablature were from Special, though it was somewhat unusual for the songs to be unfinished. It was much stranger that there were as of yet no lyrics.

It was for this reason that the Ghouls had waited until now to attempt to play these songs, unsure if they were to receive more later or if their next album was supposed to be instrumental. They had all considered asking Papa II, but the souse had made himself oddly scarce the past few weeks, to the point where not even the clergy seemed to know where he had hidden himself. It was looking like, though the Ghouls liked to doubt it, that their Papa had abandoned them. Or if not that, he may have found himself in the same so-called dungeon where Papa I may or may not be kept. Whatever the case may be, the Ghouls were forced to continue on with what they had, awkwardly playing notes that didn't seem to flow and wondering if this was really the final version they were meant to play.

After a while, there was a general consensus that practice should be over. They were all tired, the songs didn't make sense, the glares tossed Water's way from Aether were making the bassist uneasy enough to throw off his rhythm, and the whole thing just felt messy. In the end, the Ghouls all sheepishly made their ways back to their own rooms, confusedly humming the broken parts to the songs to make sense of them or idly wondering what Special could be up to in order to leave them with such half-assed work. The next day, they all got their answer.

Painfully early, before even the sun dared to peek over the horizon, each Ghoul was awakened by their respective Purblind and dragged out of bed. Some were more receptive to be awoken than others, but all were more than a little annoyed to have to be awake at such an ungodly hour with no prior warning. There were muffled complaints as robes were forcefully draped over tired bodies, but the five men were eventually ushered out to the main hall where the eminent clergy waited, visibly nervous and possibly even frightened by some unknown force.

Sensing bodies in the hall, the Purblind all solemnly bowed toward the clergy and stepped back, relinquishing the Ghouls to people who actually maintained sight. The moment the Purblind turned their backs to their charges, the members of the clergy grabbed at hands and arms and tugged along the Ghouls with an urgency the masked men did not realize they were capable of.

"Please, please hurry," whispered one of the quieter ones as he lightly pushed at the back of Earth's shoulders to get him to move. He noticed Aether raising a hand up to cover a yawn and lightly smacked it down, the Ghoul making a soft whine in protest. "This is most important. Please be present and aware, children."

The slight quaver in the clergy member's voice caught the attention of the sleepy Ghouls, the masked men exchanging blinks of tired confusion. As they shambled along, trying to wake themselves up more so they wouldn't trip over the fronts of their robes, Fire briefly spoke up. "What exactly is so important? Can't we still be sleeping now?" The other Ghouls grunted as they agreed, Air even turning back to look at Fire with a bit of sympathy.

"Or surely this can wait... at least until the sun is up." Aether muttered a brief "fuck" as he tripped over an upraised piece of the stone floor, a clergy member immediately swooping in to right him with steady hands. "It's so dark I can't hardly see my own fucking feet."

A hush fell between the clergy members as they looked between each other, pushing and dragging the less-than-cooperative Ghouls along. Most bit their tongues, and rather sharply, but the one holding Air's hands as she pulled him forward was brave enough to speak. "I am sorry to say, dear children, but this really can not wait at all. Your presence is needed... immediately." She swallowed thickly, fearful of the words she was about to say and darting her eyes around to seek guidance from the others.

Air tugged his hands free from the clergy member's grasp and stared her down as he stepped forward to prove he was capable of moving on his own. "If this is just as very important, then tell us what the problem is." He turned quickly to cast a harsh look to the other pale-faced figures, but none of them said a word, some even shivering subtly as though they were about to cry.

The reaction from the clergy members made the Ghouls uneasy, even Air tensing up a bit, wary of whatever response may come his way. Now anxious enough to get their adrenaline up, the masked men paused in their steps, the grasps of pallid hands at their arms and backs weakening in defeat. Another silence ran through the dim hall, ended by one of the taller clergy members clearing his throat.

All eyes went to the young man, confusion and worry evident in every stare as they all waited for the answer given in his wavering voice. "It is important th-that... that we go now because... well..." He paused, audibly choking back a sob. It took him a moment to recover, the tension in the room rising when he finally found the words to speak. "Y-you see, children... I am afraid that our dear Papa is... very ill." Another pause, punctuated by soft gasps from Ghouls and an almost audible wave of fear. "It... it is serious. Please. We have to hurry."

The young man did not need to repeat himself. Clothbound and booted feet alike were quick on the cold stone of the floor as Papa II's most faithful ran through the halls to the master chamber at the other end of the sanctum. Once there, the clergy members all fell back, knowing their place was never to be in that most unholy of rooms. They kept a great distance, curious to know what lay within the room and anxious to see the condition of their Papa, but respectful enough to stay away. It was only the Ghouls who were allowed inside, and they all knew this.

Looks were exchanged by Ghouls, some nervous for what they may see and others placing silent bets on the livelihood of their Papa, until finally Aether stepped forward. His large yet unsteady hand pushed at heavy wood, helped quickly by three and four more from his brothers until the imposing door swung open freely, the knob on its other side lightly hitting the wall.

The room inside was chillingly cold, the breeze from the door opening alone enough to send a biting shiver through the bodies standing in the hallway. A rich cloud of incense, chokingly strong and thick enough to be grabbed in wisps from the air, wafted its way out to tickle masked noses. The room was barely brighter than the dark hallway outside, the light of flickering candles bouncing sharp shadows along the walls and across the expressionless masks of the Ghouls. It took a few hard blinks to really see what lay inside, though each of the Ghouls had been within this room on numerous occasions.

Across from the silent figures that stood shocked in the doorway, propped up with silken pillows and surrounded by hole-covered teak boxes filled with incense, lay Papa II in his bed. He was missing his robes and mitre, the latter no doubt very carefully folded and laying within a satin case somewhere in the dark room. The former hung up in a nearby closet, the trail of grucifixes along its front giving off a faint glint in the glow of candles. Instead of the normal papal attire, Papa II appeared to be wearing nothing at all--or at least nothing from the waist up--as could be seen by the pale flesh of a single arm above the blankets, the rest of his body tucked snugly within the confines of deep red Egyptian cotton. The man also donned a less upkept version of his usual paint, faded and lightly smeared across his features as though he had slept with it on, which seemed likely based on the current predicament.

Upon hearing his door swing open, Papa II slowly looked up to see his five Ghouls and half a dozen of his clergy all half-clambering over each other to peer inside the room at him. He smiled and attempted a chuckle, weakly beckoning with his hand. "Come in, children. There is no need to be shy." He then pointed at the door, now very faintly swaying on its hinges. "And close that door. It's cold out there."

The Ghouls all quietly reflected upon Papa II's words for a long moment, very sure that the room they were about to step inside of was far colder than the more welcoming hall behind them. After a nervous glance to one another, they all entered their Papa's sacred domain, obediently staying within their designated order with Aether at the front and Fire taking up the rear. Once all were inside, Fire grabbed the doorknob, catching the eye of one of the clergy members and exchanging an anxious look with her as he closed the door behind himself with a click.

More cautious than was probably necessary, the Ghouls lined up beside the bed, looking down upon their Papa with confusion and worry. There was a silence then that lasted only a few seconds but felt like minutes before Water softly cleared his throat, he and his brothers turning their focus to Aether. Everyone knew that Aether was the highest-ranked and therefore most worthy to speak to their Papa, so it was up to him and him alone to talk, although the others would patiently stand in silence as they received whatever information would come their way.

Aether swallowed, his mouth a bit dry as he spoke with carefully picked out words, said in a soft tone. "We heard the news, Papa. ...Are you..." He had to pause a moment, giving a quick glance to Air, who nodded reassuringly. Returning his focus to his Papa, he leaned forward a fraction of an inch, his eyes narrowing with concern. "Are you going to be okay?"

The sickly man barked out a laugh, waving away Aether's words with a very slight gesture. "Aether... You are Aether, yes?" He waited for the Ghoul's slow nod before continuing. "Aether, I am sick as a dog but well on the road to recovery, thanks to your well wishes and the prayers from all of my children."

Water rolled his eyes and Earth clicked his tongue, and the two were immediately shot a piercing stare from Papa II, the older man's demeanor changing from light and pleasant to painfully cold in just an instant. The young Ghouls felt their words catch in their throats, unable to even apologize, and bowed their heads solemnly while Air very subtly shook his.

A moment later and Papa II's usual sneer was back on his face, his attention back to Aether, who stiffened in response to those mismatched eyes looking through him. "Despite what my most faithful clergy may say, what I have is not severe, and I most certainly will not be dying. Not again."

For a fleeting moment, there was a genuine smile thrown to Aether, and the eldest Ghoul was dumbfounded by the almost tender way Papa II looked at him. He sharply looked over to his brothers, hoping one of them had seen that single second of kindness, but it seemed that he alone bore witness to it.

"Nevertheless..." Papa II drew back Aether's attention, the Ghoul coughing softly as he recovered, eyes very slowly running back up his Papa's covered body as the old man spoke. "As I lay here, confined to this cloth prison, I will be unable to lead all of you. I'm sure... most of you..." He cast a quick glare to Water and Earth, the two shrinking back considerably. "...Will do fine on your own. But I know there will be times that you will need guidance. And the clergy are absolutely useless without me telling them when to wipe their own asses, it seems."

Fire, furthest away from Papa II, chanced a snicker at the comment and was honestly surprised Water didn't do the same. The lowest-ranked Ghoul tilted his head as he looked over at his brother, noting an almost sort of fear in his eyes. The same seemed to be true of Earth as well, both of the younger Ghouls silenced and very faintly shivering as they stood at their Papa's side.

After a small coughing fit, during which Aether was angrily waved away, Papa II continued on. "So since you are all my children, I think it best to bring in a sort of... babysitter, to keep all of you in line until I feel well enough to watch over you again."

These words were met with looks of varying degrees of uncertainty, Air alone seeming annoyed, his eyes almost glazing over at the idea of someone else to bother him. "And just who does you expect to babysit us?" He unforgivingly spoke out of turn, his brothers all taking a subtle step away from him in a quiet attempt to not be caught in a harsh lecture.

But there was no lecture. There were no harsh words at all. In fact, Papa II laughed at Air's insubordination, the other Ghouls even more confused than before and terrified to speak a word lest this be a trap. "Oh, my dear sweet Ghoul... whichever one you are." At this, Air muttered his denomination bitterly, and Papa II promptly ignored it, a snide smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. "I thought it would be obvious that I would pick your brother Special to watch over you. After all..." His eyes slowly scanned along the line of his wide-eyed Ghouls, from lowest to highest, stopping to stare deeply into Aether's nervous eyes as he continued. "...I trust him more than any of you."


	5. consilium

After leaving Papa II's room, reassured again and again by the clearly unwell man that he was nothing but the picture of health, the Ghouls had made their way to one of their many meeting places. Upon entering, each one found himself a seat amongst the old and mismatched furniture, previously scavenged from abandoned homes or generously "donated" to the clergy by people who did not keep a close eye on their belongings.

Water and Earth quickly claimed the hard couch against one wall, a small cloud of dust issuing off of it under their weight. Air made himself comfortable atop a backless bar stool, using his feet to very faintly spin back and forth on it. Aether roughly flopped down in a wooden armchair and slung his legs over an arm, slowly flexing his ankle from side to side, his heel rubbing against the layers of old lacquer. Lastly, Fire carefully sat in a rickety old plastic chair, putting his weight to the side without the broken leg.

The Ghouls all anxiously sat around in silence, sometimes exchanging pointed looks or making a motion to speak, only to decide against it at the last second. Their Papa had said many things to them that day, a lot of it unexpected and even more of it bringing up questions they weren't ready to ask. There was so much for the five of them to discuss but not a single one of them wanted to be the one to start speaking out, each of them silently processing the conversation Papa II had with Aether just a few minutes prior.

The quietest Ghoul in the room was Aether, scrunched up in his chair and absently staring off into space. He didn't say anything. He couldn't say anything. He knew that if he did, he would end up betraying the trust his Papa had for him. But there was something so wrong with this whole situation and he couldn't get his mind off of it. Their Papa's illness was so abrupt and so violent that even the clergy were unsure what to do. The man had been absent for a few days--perhaps closer to a week now that Aether thought on it--but prior to that, he had been the picture of health, carousing with the women of the clergy and his ever-faithful harem. So what happened to cause this?

Questions and theories bounced around in Aether's head, some plausible while others completely absurd, but nothing really seemed to add up. He kept thinking about the things his Papa had said to him earlier, and the more he thought about them, the more peculiar they seemed to be. Why would they all need a babysitter in the first place when he himself was hardly around? Why get someone to watch over them at all when the clergy and Purblind did a better job keeping them all organized than what he could ever do? What did he mean that his illness would not be killing him "again?" Did he really mean it when he said that he trusted Special more than anyone? More than Aether?

Above all this, there was one thing that really struck a sour note with Aether. He knew his Papa better than any of his brothers, and perhaps better than anyone in the clergy. He also, being the eldest and most senior brother, had spent much of his time in their earlier years taking care of his own brothers in sickness and health before the clergy even came to them. He knew a faker when he saw one, and his Papa was no exception. This sudden, sharp illness was a ruse... but why?

Confused and wrapped up in his own thoughts, Aether silently sunk deeper in his chair as the others quietly thought over what to say, fidgeting in their respective seats and nervously toying with rings and bracelets. He looked over at all his brothers to gauge their reactions to this situation, receiving the anticipated looks of worry and sadness from the youngest but when he got to Air, he noticed something different. Though it was hard to tell through the mask, the tallest Ghoul seemed completely unfazed.

Perhaps it was coincidence, or maybe he felt eyes upon him, but after a few moments of being inspected, Air turned to meet Aether's gaze. It was then that Aether saw it, a bitter but knowing look that shone through dark eyes: Air knew that their Papa was faking, too. A shiver ran up and down Aether's spine as he and Air shared this silent look, the eldest Ghoul unable to look away. Finally, after seconds that felt like forever, Air slowly shrugged his shoulders and turned back away, leaving Aether feeling cold and more confused than he was before.

Many minutes and four or five attempts at speech from as many mouths later, Fire finally nervously piped up. "Does you all think he's going to be alright?" The question was met with softly sucked in breaths and barely audible grunts, but no words. Swallowing, Fire tried again. "He just seems so... sick. You does not think he will... uhh... he will leave us--"

Fire's awkward metaphor was cut short by a near-shout from Water. "Hell no! The fucker, he is just trying to scare us." The young Ghoul threw himself against the back of the couch, crossing his arms over his chest. "He probably got sick on purpose to makes us all feel bad for him."

The lowest-ranked Ghoul was unconvinced of this notion and gave Water a disbelieving look. "Why would he do that? Does he think we should show more loyalty?" His voice was sharp, almost angry, but softened as a very negative thought came to him. "Does he think we are not good enough for him?"

Both Water and Earth stiffened at this question, Water more so. "Well, hej, that can't be true." Earth leaned forward on the couch, the almost forced smile beneath his mask heard in his voice. "I would think he would be more straight with us. Tell us that we were fucking up, ja?"

Fire nodded slowly, accepting Earth's suggestion, but Water only became less certain. The young Ghoul gave a short punch to Earth's arm, his brother immediately flinching and rubbing at the sore spot. "No, idiot, had you not been listening?"

Earth made a quick glance up to Air and Aether before quickly shaking his head, receiving another punch to his arm. "Aj! That's starting to hurt, you know..." He more viciously rubbed his arm, hoping the heat would soothe the sting in his muscles.

"I guess not, then." Water let out a loud sigh, turning his attention to the rest of the room as he spoke. "Look, you know, maybe it is just me... but that thing he said..." He looked over at Aether, briefly pointing at him. "To you, Aether. About Special." His eyes lingered on Aether for a few seconds before flicking back away to stare at a corner. "He said he trusts that guy more than you. ...What the fuck was that?"

There was another silence in the room. Everyone had been thinking about what Papa II had said, particularly about how their mysterious brother was more trustworthy than even Aether. It was just that no one had wanted to bring it up, least of all Aether himself. The highest-ranked Ghoul felt a deep pain inside, like it had just been revealed to him that his best friend of years had been lying to his face since day one. In some senses, that notion was pretty accurate.

Aether had been very close to Papa I, and the bond had only strengthened with Papa II. Though they were two different people, they both held the same place in Aether's heart as a loving mentor and guide. In some rare cases, when the white-faced codgers dared to let a hidden smile crack along their lips, seen only by what was presumably their most trusted Ghoul, Aether even considered them confidantes. He knew their every secret, he kept every word whispered in his ear to himself, he lived and served for his Papas and never dared question their ways. So how dare he--they--after all these years, suddenly drop on him that he was never actually good enough?

Angry and hurt, Aether kicked his foot more roughly, the once rhythmic thrum of rubber sole to aging wood becoming an erratic squeak. "I don't know what the fuck he meant by all that..." He spat out words past clenched teeth, glaring daggers out across the room. "But I do know that, until our dear Papa gets over his sickness, our little babysitter is going to have a real rough time with us."

The other Ghouls looked unsure at first, but then a wave of sly smiles went over three different faces, seen only through squints in blue and brown eyes. Water and Earth turned to each other and gave quick slaps to each others' backs, and Air nodded, letting out a low and amused chuckle. Ideas of ways to torment their youngest brother, in the hopes that their Papa would see that he really wasn't cut out for this kind of work, were already spinning through the Ghouls' heads. Water and Earth discussed filthy pranks between each other, sometimes shouting out something to garner approval from Aether. Aether listened to them and added his own two cents when he could, for once letting his younger brothers act out. Even Air seemed intrigued, grunting softly every now and then or giving a pointed look to Aether, who breathed out a short laugh when he noticed.

It was Fire alone who did not approve of what was going on and what was being planned, refusing to take part in the discussion. He felt isolated from his own brothers, not understanding why they felt so negatively for someone they had never met and who was ordained by their protector to be the one to take care of them while he was recovering. He was most shocked by Aether, who until this moment had claimed that Special was nothing but kind and sweet, if not a bit ditzy. He stared at them all, listening but not hearing their malicious words and all the ways they wished to hurt such a sweet soul, and he began to grow frightened for his brother's safety.


	6. adventus

Late that night, a small and dingy black car rolled up to the sanctum, quietly sputtering as it parked within a patch of moonlight by the broad and tall doors. After a moment, the driver stepped out of the car, coughed quietly against the back of one of his black rabbit-skin gloves, and went to assist his passenger. He opened the back passenger door to the car and politely stepped aside, allowing a black-robed figure to ease himself out of the seat.

The robed figure slowly stood, old cloth hiding pale skin only visible at a glance on thin and perfectly manicured fingers. He rose his arms and arched his back in a slow and much-needed stretch, aching body starting to relax from the tense and long car ride.

As he stretched, the driver muttered to himself and popped the trunk, pulling out two smallish suitcases and setting them on the ground by the robed man's feet. "Here you go," the driver began with a sniff brought on by the chill. "Here's your stuff, uh..." He paused and snapped his fingers. "What was it you wanted me to call you?"

The robed man smiled behind the black cloth covering his face, quietly adjusting his bracers as he spoke. "Special, my good man. You are to call me Special."

The driver scoffed as he lit a cigarette, holding it tightly between his teeth. "Special. Sure." He slammed back shut the trunk, the whole car jolting about at the action, and sat himself back in the driver seat. Door still open, he peered up at the Ghoul beside the car from under the brim of his hat. "Well, 'Special,' here's home sweet home. ...When you need me again, you know what to do." He chuckled and it turned into a bitter cough as he shut the car door, almost immediately speeding off, red tail lights quickly fading away in the distance.

Special had finally arrived at the sanctum. Or at least, it was assumed that he arrived and that he had not already been there the whole time. It was still a mystery to everyone just where Special took residence as no one had come across him or his room in the endlessly expansive and winding halls.

Nevertheless, as the slender and naively perky Ghoul looked about the dying front lawn, an attentive clergy member had run out of the sanctum and snatched up his bags. Without so much as a word, the short man re-entered the unholy dominion, scurrying through cold and dark hallways. Special followed behind at a reasonable distance as he was led to a room far down the hall set aside for the rest of the Ghouls. The clergy member unlocked the door with a relatively large silver key and dropped off Special's luggage inside the room before silently giving the key to him and rushing back off down the hall. Special watched the short man shuffle away, shrugging slightly before entering what would now be his room.

The second Special's door clicked shut, five other doors creaked open, the heads of Ghouls popping out around the corner to look at one another. Four pairs of eyes exchanged knowing looks--while one pair sadly looked at Special's door--and chuckles breathed out over toothy grins as the Ghouls thought about their plan. Their little "babysitter" was about to be in for a really rough week.

The next few days were filled with embarrassing, agonizing, and sometimes simply annoying pranks for Special. While he tried to do his work, which included finishing up the tablature for the new album he was still not finished with as well as watching over each of his brothers, Special often found himself in unsavory predicaments. The seemingly trusting Ghoul, perhaps against his better judgement, continued to believe that everything that happened to him was just bad luck or a series of strange coincidences. The wolf spider on his pillow must have come in through the window the night before, of course. The toothpaste kept squeezing out of both ends because he was pressing too hard on it, obviously. His shoes didn't seem to fit as well because he was finally having a late growth spurt, and he was certainly overdue for one of those, wasn't he?

Everything bad that kept happening to Special could be perfectly reasoned away, and there was no way it was due to the malicious pranks of his brothers. He told himself this every day, pretending as though nothing was phasing him, but quietly keeping a tally sheet of all the bad things that kept happening and who was the cause of them. On the outside, he appeared surprised and acted like everything was just happenstance, but deep down he knew that he was unwanted in the sanctum and that his cruel older brothers were, without even so much as a hello since his arrival, trying to get him to leave.

That is, all but Fire. Special had noticed over the past few days that the other Ghouls would act suspiciously around him, or snicker before he picked something up or twisted a doorknob, and some of them would laugh a little too loudly when they found out what bad thing had happened to him this time. But it was Fire alone who did not laugh at Special's misfortune and actually seemed sympathetic to his various mishaps. Special was intrigued by this and on the afternoon of his third day there, after tripping over a wire tied in the walls of the hall, he made his way to Fire's room and cautiously knocked on the door. 

"Who is it?" A timid voice called out, muffled by the thick wood of the door.

Special paused before responding, now suddenly wondering if this too would be the beginning of another prank. "It's... it's Special."

From inside the room, Fire echoed the name under his breath, and there was a nervous pause before he responded. "Right! Uh... Hang on! I'm just..." He trailed off, the sounds of frantic movement within the room able to be heard. There was the unmistakable sound of shuffling papers, and then the graceful thunk and twang of a guitar falling over, and then finally heavy footsteps before the door swung open.

Fire practically flung himself out into the hallway with how forcefully he opened his door, nearly losing his footing on the slick tile floor. He panted lightly, a little out of breath, vivid blue eyes peering out from his mask to be met with the empty void of Special's face. "Special, hej! Good, uh... good to see you."

Special snorted quietly, bouncing once on his heels. "Yes, and you as well." He paused for two beats before cocking his head to the side, folding his hands in front of himself. "May I come in?"

"C-come? Come IN?" Fire glanced back at his room quick enough for Special to hear the quiet snap of the bones in his neck popping. "Uhh... Suuure..." He slowly turned back to look at Special, backing away from the door to let the shorter Ghoul inside, and accidentally tripping over the guitar he still hadn't picked up.

Special put a hand to his mouth to symbolize hiding a smile and delicately stepped inside the room, watching his feet so as not to slip on any of the various notebook pages scattered about the room's floor. "It is a mess in here, Fire. I thought that Papa would have taught you better manners than this." He carefully made his way across the room and then seated himself down on the edge of Fire's small bed, the only flat surface of the room not covered in paper.

Taking Special's words as a threat, Fire immediately set to cleaning his room, hastily grabbing up sheets of paper in his hands. "He did, he did, uhh... I'm just... well, I..." He thought about his next words as he tapped some sheets together on his knee to straighten them. "I was busy writing... and doing some practice... of my own, you know. And, uh... yeah."

Special allowed Fire's excuse to come to its awkward conclusion, glancing at some of the papers once Fire mentioned them, and being surprised to see crude tablature written on them. "Writing? Writing music, Fire?" He scoffed, and reached for one of the papers close to the bed. "You know that's my jo--"

Before Special could finish his sentence, Fire reached over and snatched the page out of Special's hand, adding it to the surprisingly large stack he held. "Sorry, this isn't for you." Noting Special's offended posture and hearing the click of his tongue, Fire quickly waved a hand back and forth in a "you don't understand" type gesture. "No no, I mean! Um... it's... well, it's private." Special hummed an affirmative response, but didn't stop from trying to take a peek at pages lying about as he sat on the bed. "Never mind these, just... what are you doing here?"

Special didn't respond to the question for a few seconds, seeming to have forgotten himself why he had come in. "Oh... Well, I just thought it would be a good idea to visit each of you individually to get to know you better." It was only partially a lie as he fully intended to get a better feeling for the rest of his brothers once they stopped trying to get rid of him.

"Oh, uh... Sure, that makes sense," Fire mumbled as he finished picking up all the papers, placing them in a less than tidy stack on a small writing desk in the corner. He turned to walk to the bed and tripped over the guitar on the floor a second time, pulling a soft snort from Special, and sighed as he picked it up and put it in its proper place as well. His room finally clear of clutter, he roughly plopped himself down on the bed next to Special, making the younger Ghoul bounce from the force.

It was at this moment that Fire's mind went from being embarrassed about his personal song writing to being nervous having Special in his room, on his bed, and that he was now sitting next to him. He let out a soft yelp at this realization, which he half-swallowed as he spoke. "Sooo, wh-what do you want to know, S-Special?"

Special smirked beneath the cloth on his face, enjoying how flustered Fire was being around him. It was a bit of a boost to his ego, not to mention cute. "Well, first, I want to talk about something that's bugging me."

Fire leaned away slightly, unsure of what question would be asked, and anxious to hear it. "Something bugging you? What is it?" Is it me, he thought to himself nervously.

"You see, ever since I got here, I've been having... bad luck, I guess you could say." Special dropped his voice slightly, forcing Fire to lean back in. "I don't know if you have noticed, but bad things keep happening to me. And the others... our brothers... I think they are the cause of all these things." He faked a sniffle, hoping to play on Fire's emotions. "I thought we were all brothers. Why would they act so cruelly toward me when I have done none of them any wrong?"

Fire felt ashamed by his own brothers and scratched the back of his head as he thought of how to answer Special. "Well, it's like... I mean, you're supposed to be our babysitter. ...But we're not... babies, you know?" He laughed, and Special joined him, making him blush under his mask. "And um... Aether, he... he is jealous, I think. Of you."

"Jealous of me?" Special was genuinely surprised by this information, but knowing that a high-ranked Ghoul thought this way of him was also somewhat exciting. "What does he have to be jealous about? He is the highest of all of you, and he is basically Papa's right hand man, is he not?"

Fire nodded. "That's... true... but Papa also told him something that we don't really like." He grunted softly as he remembered his Papa's words. "He said that, uh, that he trusts you more than any of us. More than Aether."

Special was very quiet for a moment, thinking about this. He hummed softly, putting a knuckle to his lips as he thought. "Don't you think it would be obvious that he trusts me most? After all, I am the one who speaks for all of us. Aether may help, but it is my work, primarily."

Hearing this made Fire pull away slightly, letting out a quiet "huh" in response. "You know... I never thought of it that way. But I guess you're right. You do all the talking for us so of course he trusts you most." He chuckled, reassured by Special's words. "Except that one time... Oh!" He snapped his fingers and pointed at Special as a thought came to him, the smaller Ghoul tilting his head at the action. "Since we're talking about it. Interviews and everything. Uhh... do you have any idea why he... Papa... made me do one? I mean... you and Aether do them. Not me. Not us. So why was it me that... time..." He vaguely trailed off, unsure if Special even knew the answer.

Special, however, was quick to respond. "Oh that? Well, I figured one of you would want to be in the spotlight for once. So I convinced Papa to let you perform in my stead." He shrugged, and folded his hands together in his lap. "After all, I can't be there all the time, right? What if I got sick? Then who would spread our word?"

Fire took this answer in slowly, biting the edge of his lip as he realized how stupid his question really was. "Oh, huh... So I was like... your understudy. Heh... cool." Of course that was why he was dragged into an interview. Why else would he speak for his brothers? He was the lowest-ranked Ghoul and Papa barely trusted him at all. The thought of this reminded him that he had gotten off-topic rather quickly. "Right! Uh... I should tell the others to knock it off, huh? With the jokes and shit."

"Yes, I would appreciate it if you did!" Special laughed, but it was one of relief rather than genuine happiness. "Is all that really the reason why our brothers have been so mean to me while I have been here? Do they think I'll take Aether's place or something?" Special shook his head, sighing heavily at the childish behavior. "Oh, by the way. I couldn't help but notice that you have not been participating in their torturing of me. Not that I could see, at least. Why is that?"

Fire jumped at the question, eyes darting away. "Well, I just think it's... it's mean, you know? You shouldn't do mean things to people for no reason." He shrugged heavily, looking back up to Special and wincing when he remembered he had no eyes to look into.

Special clicked his tongue softly and awwed at Fire's reasoning, making the taller Ghoul fidget. "That's kind of you, Fire. I know it must be difficult to go against what the others say, being so far down the chain." He placed a hand on Fire's thigh, the taller Ghoul's breath hitching at the contact. "I really appreciate it."

Fire's eyes went from the blank slate where Special's face would be down to the pale hand that rested on his upper thigh. The hand did not move neither up nor down but just stayed there, the mere feeling of the warmth radiating through Special's fingers causing a tingle through Fire's entire leg. "J-ja... no problem," he finally managed, his voice about half an octave higher than normal.

If Special noticed the way Fire reacted to him, he made no mention of it. He simply pat Fire's leg twice before sliding his hand off of the limb and back to rest in his lap. "Well, I believe I should be going now. I have a lot to do around here and our brothers have been making it hard to keep up with my responsibilities." He smiled under his cloth covering and stood, turning back to face Fire. "Show me to the door, will you?"

Special's words were very clearly a joke, as Fire's room was barely more than ten feet across either direction, but Fire took them very seriously and bounded up to the door eagerly. "Right, of course, I'm sorry..." He sheepishly opened the door, not noticing the sympathetic headshake Special gave him, and gestured to the hall.

"Thank you, Fire," Special said, bowing his head sightly before turning on his heel to leave. Before he could go, he was stopped by a somewhat hesitant hand on his shoulder.

"Uh, hej..." Fire lightly drummed his fingers on Special's shoulder for a moment before he realized what he was doing and quickly dropped his hand to his side. "...I had a question."

Special tilted his head curiously as he looked back at Fire. "Hmm? Go ahead." He nodded, wanting Fire to continue.

Fire gulped softly, suddenly wishing he hadn't thought to ask what he was about to say. "I wanted to know... and I hope you don't mind me asking or anything..." He raised his hands up defensively, waving them slightly. "Uhh, why is it you have no clothes like ours yet? ...And no symbol, either." He tensed nervously, expecting the worst response for such a rude question.

But Special was not offended, or even surprised. He quite happily bounced on his heels before speaking, a smile evident in his voice. "Oh... that's because I haven't been given one yet. But Papa will choose one for me soon." He solemnly raised a finger, and a knowing tone tinged the edges of his voice. "He even said I would be getting my rank and new uniform for my next interview." Enjoying the stunned silence this revelation earned him from Fire, he chuckled to himself and left Fire's room, soft-bottomed shoes tapping a quiet rhythm on the tile floor.


	7. pudor

On the night of Special's third day being at the sanctum, a secret meeting was held between the other Ghouls in their most secret spot. The tiny run-down room, with its mismatched chairs and molding walls, was in such a bad condition not even the Clergy would step foot inside to clean it. It was a perfect place for the Ghouls to hide away from their duties, completely in plain sight. It was even better as a meeting room since Papa II--and even Papa I before him--seemed completely unaware of the cramped space's existence. Therefore, the Ghouls could discuss matters that would surely get them excommunicated if those words reached higher-up ears without fear.

This particular meeting was about Special's arrival and how well he had been putting up with, or altogether ignoring, the endless pranking that was being done to him. As usual, Earth and Water shared a seat, this one a barely held together loveseat with half-rotting plastic covering its cushions. Air had gotten himself comfortable deep within an armchair that had somehow avoided the mold growing in all corners of the room. Aether sat on an overturned laundry basket stolen from the laundry room, and it was considerably better than sitting on the suspiciously damp floor. Lastly, Fire stood, too upset by the current situation to relax and not willing to find a spot on the floor without a puddle on it.

Water was the first to speak up, clicking his tongue softly as he opened his mouth. "So, what's with him? I thought he would have been gone after the first day!" He gestured out to the room, receiving nods from his brothers in response.

"True!" Earth nodded. "Or at least after that thing you did to his toothbrush..." He gave an approving look at Aether, and the eldest Ghoul let out a brief chuckle, waving away the words.

Water huffed softly, upset by how Aether refused to accept a compliment. "Seriously, man, that's classic! And he just takes it like it's nothing!" He winced, an uncomfortable almost itching feeling running across his teeth. He leaned out toward the rest of the group, dropping his voice a little. "You know... I think he is still using it, too, actually." The rest of the Ghouls made sounds of disgust and disbelief, followed by snickers by all but Fire at the mere thought.

Earth snapped his fingers then, and pointed over at Air. "And Air's one, too. Man, you really know how to pick them, but he didn't even say a word about it. Even though we all had heard his scream and falling in!" He held his hand in the air and dropped it slightly, accompanying it with his best impression of something falling in water and a quiet, high-pitched scream. This earned him a couple laughs and a slap to the back from Water while Air sheepishly sunk deeper in his chair, smiling behind his mask.

"But it's still not enough for him." Water leaned back on the loveseat, putting his hand to his chin up under his mask as he thought. "Maybe we go about things differently. Something more insidious, huh?"

The other Ghouls' minds started to work, thinking of ways that they could rid themselves of their persistent babysitter, but Fire looked around at everyone, puzzled. "Or, uh... Maybe you all should... stop?" He shrugged, and all eyes turned to him. "I mean, he hasn't... done anything wrong, uhh..." Suddenly aware that his brothers were all staring at him, annoyance clear in their eyes, he crossed his arms and quickly shut himself up.

"Why the hell do you care?" Earth snorted, tilting his head back slightly to peer down his nose at Fire. "I thought we all wanted him gone! We don't need a guy like him around! Right, Aether?" He turned to look at the eldest Ghoul, and his Brothers did the same.

Aether was quiet for a few moments, then exhaled sharply, not quite a sigh. "Hm. I mean, I don't mind the guy, sure. He's alright to work with." He took a few more moments, eyes focused on a certain point on the floor as he considered his reasoning for letting himself and the others behave this way. "...But I'm not about to be outranked by some guy Papa chose arbitrarily to mismanage us."

"Well, yeah sure, he's watching over us." Fire raised a hand, palm upward as he tried to plead his case. "But... how is that different from Papa? He said he trusts hi--"

"And that's the whole point, Fire!" Aether leaned forward on the basket he sat on as he cut Fire off mid-sentence, his tone tinged with bitterness. "Why does Papa trust him more than me? Have I not been here since the beginning to be his loyal aide? Have I not helped all of you in all your times of need?" His eyes scanned the room, and no one was able to meet his gaze, shame and fear overwhelming them all. "So why the hell does he get to come in like this? None of you had even met him before a few days ago, and he's been around for years." He leaned back again, uselessly raising a hand and then slapping it back down on his thigh. "Where does he get off acting like that? Not showing up until Papa calls on him?"

No one wanted to answer the obviously rhetorical question thrown to them, but Fire, foolish as usual, spoke up in a very unsure voice. "Well, he is called Special, right..."

Water exhaled a breath through his teeth and threw his hand out in Fire's direction as if to bat his words out of the air. "Yeah, but that means nothing, man! You're Fire. Isn't that like the strongest element?" He glanced around at each of his brothers as he continued, ending back on Fire again. "Like, getting burned to death is a lot worse than fucking drowning or whatever, right? But you're bottom of the chain here."

"But that's because--" Fire tried to speak again.

Earth was quick to speak over Fire. "That's because Papa doesn't even like him!" He dropped his voice, almost laughing as he spoke. "The only reason he is here is because he plays guitar pretty good."

Fire sucked in a breath and gnawed at his bottom lip to keep himself from saying something he would regret. He took another few seconds to calm himself before trying again. "So maybe the only reason Special is here is because he... talks pretty good...?"

"Oh, enough, Fire!" Aether rolled his eyes, and leaned as far forward on the basket as he could, hands pressed firmly on his knees. "We all know why you're defending him."

Water snickered loudly, forcing his words out even as he laughed. "Yeah, it's because you wants his dick in you!"

This exclamation caused the room to erupt in laughter, making Fire cross his arms and shrink back against the wall to appear as small as possible. Water was already snorting stupidly, and Earth joined him almost immediately after the words left his mouth, repeating the phrase between guffaws. Aether tried not to laugh, at first, but seeing his Brothers pulled a long and low chuckle out of him that he almost felt bad about as he saw how upset Fire seemed to be.

Even Air managed a dry "haha" or two... until he noticed a figure patiently waiting in the doorway. Someone who, unbeknownst to everyone, had been there for quite some time. "G-guys...," he managed, his first word the whole conversation, as he slowly pointed toward the door. His brothers followed his finger and laughs died abruptly in throats as everyone looked over to see Special standing just outside the small room.

Special took on a relaxed pose as he looked at each of his brothers in turn, exaggerating his head movements so they would know where he looked despite the cloth that covered his face. "...Gentlemen. How... good to see you all in such high spirits."

No one in the room said a word, too stunned by Special's appearance to make any comments, and too embarrassed by their conversation to apologize for what they had already said.

Pleased by his own entry, Special happily hummed to himself, slipping the ends of his fingers into the rope at his waist. "I came to tell you all news. First, our Papa seems to be much healthier than he was a few days ago, and will most likely no longer require my services as your overseer. And second..." The cloth near his mouth crinkled slightly, a telling sign of a smile. "...I have an interview to perform tomorrow at the request of our Papa. Therefore, by tomorrow at noon, I will no longer be here... in your way, as it were." He lifted a hand and danced his fingers about for a moment, accompanying it with a barely noticeable shake of his head. He then clasped his hands together in a praying gesture and bowed respectfully. "Thank you, dear Brothers, for your warm hospitality, and have a good rest of the evening."

Special did not wait for a response from his Brothers before he took his leave, robes swishing behind him as his footsteps lightly tapped on the floor down the hall. He did not expect his Brothers to speak, nor did he really care what any of them would say. The things that he had seen and heard these past few days were telling enough of the state of the so-called Ghost Project, and he had much to bring up with Papa II when he got the opportunity. For now, he needed to prepare for his interview, and--what he hoped to be--his big reveal.

Inside the room, the five Ghouls sat or stood in silence, each dealing with an uncomfortable pit in their respective stomachs. It was a solid minute, perhaps more, before Earth finally broke the silence, his voice soft and uncertain. "...Did he hear what we had said...?"


	8. attentatio

The morning of Special's departure from the sanctum went by quietly. No tricks. No pranks. No sneers or cruel looks thrown to the young Ghoul as he packed the rest of his things and left. Breakfast was eaten and pleasantries were exchanged between those that normally lived and worked in the church, and everyone restlessly waited to hear news of when this new interview would be visible for all.

They did not have very long to wait. In fact, just after the Ghouls had finished another awkward practice session with the still unfinished music, a member of the Clergy came to their practice space to inform them of the video. The Ghouls politely thanked the young woman and set her on her way, seemingly eager to see their brother back in action, but Earth was a bit slow at getting his phone this time to search for the link to the video.

Not that one could really blame him. Special had caught them all in the act of their assholery toward him, and they all worried just what the youngest Ghoul was going to say to their Papa, and if whatever was said would get them forcibly removed. Fire felt worst of all, as he knew that Special was also (probably) aware of his crush on him, and the mixture of embarrassment and uncertainty at how Special would react to such knowledge was unbearable.

And then Fire remembered something that Special had told him the other day, when the two were in the guitarist's room. "Uh, so..." He cleared his throat before speaking again, this time a little louder. "Special told me that he is getting a symbol like us, and this interview is where he is getting to show it off."

Immediately after revealing this information, the rest of his Brothers turned to look at him, except for Earth, who was still fumbling through the videos tab on his search engine.

Aether folded his arms over his chest, disappointed in Fire for keeping this to himself. Mostly, he was upset as he had no time to prepare himself for whatever was about to be revealed in the video. "And why didn't you say anything about this sooner? That's pretty important stuff." Of all the Ghouls, he was perhaps the least worried about having Special use his own symbol, as he was certain that his Papa would reserve that spot only for the most highly respected of Ghouls. But there was still that faint voice in his head that troubled him, making him think that he may be replaced.

"For a guy in love with the dude, I had thought you wouldn't shut up about him." Water smirked under his mask and his comment earned a soft "Jo" from Air, even the largest Ghoul the slightest bit worried about the news.

Both Water and Air were anxious to see the symbol chosen for Special, but they both also felt that they had some kind of band security. Nobody even liked bassists, as far as rock band standards went, and everyone was pretty certain that Special was not the piano-playing type. Then again, those long fingers may be useful for a variety of instruments, and the charisma the young man had made both of the Ghouls nervous.

Fire realized when he looked at his Brothers what made them seem so upset, and he smiled faintly, letting out a short chuckle. "Don't tell me that you guys are afraid that he is going to take one of your jobs?"

Fire's question opened the mouths of three of his Brothers, but Earth shushed the others with a finger pressed the tip of his mask. "Shh, shh, quiet. It's loading." At this, the others went silent, and the five men, as usual, huddled around the screen to see their Brother's chosen symbol and listen to how their youngest would speak of them. ...Highly, hopefully.

The interview went on as they usually did, involving the standard questions regarding Satanism, the writing process, and who exactly Papa Emeritus was. Each of these were gracefully answered, with only a faint nervous laugh thrown between responses when Special felt he was close to saying too much. There was nothing negative said about his Brothers. It was as he normally was, neutral and professional about everything.

But during the entire video, the Ghouls watching grew more and more anxious. They could see that Special was wearing the new standardized outfit, and it looked far better on him than the one previous, a fact that Fire made sure to keep to himself. However, the angle of the camera made it so that it was impossible to see the length of cloth tied at his waist, and even less so the symbols sewn upon it. So even though there were faint sighs of relief at how kindly Special was taking this interview, each of the Ghouls were still on edge, silently willing for the camera to pan down over his fascia far enough to see bolded white. And then, when it finally did, the room was filled with relieved laughter and mocking shouts.

"Fire, it's you!" Earth snorted, barely able to keep a good grip on his phone as he watched Special happily speak to the interviewer about the band, the symbol for Fire a bright and visible white amongst the other symbols on the cloth. "Why would Papa choose your rank to represent us? You're the lowest one!"

"Maybe it's because he's so low, huh?" Aether chuckled at his own comment, playfully elbowing Fire. In truth, he was relieved to see that his own symbol was not being taken, but he was also a bit worried for Fire's own state in the band. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he wondered if it meant that his favorite little shithead would be exchanged out for a newer, prettier model. "He thinks so little of our Special Ghoul he equates him to Fire."

Water burst out laughing at this and smacked Fire's back, perhaps a little too hard. "What luck! But you know, it could be worse, eh?" He gave the disheartened Ghoul another quick smack, grinning under his mask. He was the one making the most fun of Fire, but this was because he was secretly glad to be a single rank higher. For now, his symbol was safe, and that was all that mattered.

While the other Ghouls laughed, silently grateful that it was not their symbol being taken, Fire stood there in shock and anger. That was his symbol, his mark, the only thing separating him from the rest of the Ghouls, and yet Special was allowed to use it? He may have started to become Fire's object of affection, though they had spoken only briefly, but he was still far beneath him. Special was the youngest Ghoul, after all, and the only one who wasn't present at the rituals, or even the practices. "This isn't... fair..." Fire said, just above a whisper, feeling a dull ache in his chest.

Amidst the laughter, Air noticed Fire and heard his sad comment. Casting a look to the other Ghouls, he pulled Fire aside, the shorter Ghoul flinching slightly in fear of some form of lecture. Instead, Air spoke down to Fire quietly and sincerely. "Fire... He uses your symbol, but he is not you. You know that. We all know that. And if you are afraid people doesn't see that..." He placed a hand on Fire's shoulder and gave him a hearty, reassuring shake. "...Then you prove you are different."

That was all Air said to Fire before going on about his business, already bored with the news and not caring about the interview at all. But it was these words that stuck with Fire. It was true; Special was not Fire, and he never would be. Fire just needed to show to everyone that he was better than Special, that he was different, and that even though they shared a symbol, they were not the same.

From that day on, the Nameless Ghouls worked harder and did more than they ever had before. Knowing that at any time their symbol could be taken for another, marking them as the same as someone beneath them, kept them all on their toes. Papa II also recovered from his illness relatively quickly after that, bouncing back just as fiercely as he had been before it, almost suspiciously chipper when his health returned to him. Even more suspicious than this was his new insistence on being around his Ghouls, something that he had not done during his many weeks of being their chosen leader, nor something that his predecessor had shown any interest in doing either.

So while the Ghouls did their best to appease their Papa in their own way, Papa II made himself more welcoming and more available to his charges. Practice sessions went longer, instruments were heavily worn from constant use, and every time Papa II needed something, a Ghoul would be there just a second later to aid him. While a great deal of the time it was Aether, always alert to his Papa's wishes, many times it would be Fire all but clambering over to be at his Papa's side. And Papa II, ever watchful, noticed this.

Over time, Papa II's simple nods and sneers to Fire became half-bows and pleased smiles. He maintained level eye contact with the low-ranked Ghoul rather than looking down upon him. He gave him words of encouragement and even thanked him for his work, all of which filled Fire with a sense of joy and belonging he had never felt before. Then, in the middle of one of the Ghouls' private practice sessions, Papa II did something to Fire that he only ever did for his prized Ghoul, Aether.

It was during a solo, the point where Fire put the most of his concentration. As normal, the other Ghouls watched and listened, Water and Air especially, in case either one of them wanted to critique (or criticize) his playing. But this time, eyes quickly darted away from Fire as movement was sensed at the doorway of the playing space. Papa II, casual smile upon his face, and mischievous glint in his eye, was standing just at the edge of the room, lightly rubbing his hands together as he watched Fire play.

Fire seemed completely oblivious to his Papa's presence but his brothers all glanced about nervously, exchanging looks that screamed what they were all thinking. What is he doing here? What does he want? Is someone in trouble? Is it me? All these thoughts were passed around through the room, but a shifting of cloth brought their attention back to their Papa.

With deliberate, almost cautious steps, Papa II made his way to Fire's side to watch him play, his gaze never moving away from his guitarist as he sauntered across the cold floor. It was only when Papa II was within a few feet of his Ghoul that Fire fumbled in his playing as he noticed the intimidating man making his way toward him, his eyes moving to meet those of his Papa's. His fingers slammed down on his guitar strings to silence the instrument, and his hand could hardly stay steady there, trying his best to maintain a respectful quiet for whatever words his Papa was about to say to him.

Papa II waited there beside Fire a long time, tilting his head the slightest fraction of a degree as his eyes looked down and back up over his Ghoul. Beneath the chilling gaze, Fire shuddered, heart beating harder in his chest as worry filled his head with terrified thoughts. The other Ghouls had been silent this whole time, but it felt as though an even deeper silence surrounded them all as they watched what was about to unfold.

And then, with no warning, without even so much as a word, Papa raised one of his gloved hands and lightly placed the very end of his fingertips on the back of Fire's hand. With a delicate and almost soothing touch, he traced his fingers from Fire's hand up the length of his arm, stepping forward as he did so to further close the gap between him and his Ghoul.

Fire heard someone in the room gasp and it took him a few seconds to realize that it was him, his breath catching in his throat as he did all in his power to remain as still as possible. His eyes quickly moved across those of his Brothers, begging for help, but no one was willing to assist him. Everyone remained as still and frightened as he was, hands pressed on strings or moved to rest obediently in laps. When his eyes moved back again to his Papa, he noticed that the older man had moved even closer, the feather-light touch of his glove reaching ever higher until it rested at Fire's shoulder.

Finally, after an agonizing minute that felt like an hour, Papa II spoke. "You are... Fire, yes?" His perfectly measured, dark voice drifted through the air and fell around them, an intimate pitch just loud enough to barely be heard by the other Ghouls in the room. Fire could only nod, too afraid to attempt speech, and Papa II was pleased by this reaction, fingers very softly drumming on the younger man's shoulder. "Yes... Fire..." He extended the name in a playful, yet haunting way that made Fire tingle just to hear it. "I have a bit of news for you, Fire. I have made some new... accommodations for you."

There was a pause here as Papa II patiently waited for Fire to respond. Fire was, understandably, unsure if it was his place to speak or even what to say, and again looked to his Brothers for help. This time, he was unable to meet anyone's gaze, all eyes now turned to the wall, or the floor, or anywhere else but him. Swallowing the lump that had risen in his throat, Fire looked back again to his Papa, skin freezing as cold, corpse-like eyes stared him back down. "N-News, Papa?" His voice cracked at first, and weakened as he barely breathed out his Papa's name.

Papa II's smile widened at this response, and he moved himself even closer, hand pressing down on Fire's shoulder to lightly grip and toy with the fabric there. "Yes, Fire, some wonderful news." By now, he was so close that, if Fire were not wearing his mask, he may have felt the rhythmic and cold puffs of air from the Pope's breathing against his cheek. "You see, you have done such a good job these past few weeks... Assisting myself and your Brothers... showing to me that you are more than worth the rank bestowed upon you..." His hand squeezed Fire's shoulder and he rubbed very slow circles with his thumb, making the Ghoul before him quiver from a feeling he could not express. "...And I have noticed, and wish to congratulate you with a new room."

The thought of a new room sounded fantastic to Fire. It would be great to be in a bigger space, somewhere where he could actually stretch out his legs and not hit a wall with his feet. And the fact that his Papa was here, to tell him in person, truly meant that he was doing better around here than he used to. While it was hard to talk, or even think, with Papa so close and touching him like this, Fire still moved to speak up again. "Thank you, Papa. I... I really appreciate the gesture. ...Sir." The last word was added as an after-thought and it earned him a charming smile and a particularly rough squeeze from Papa II, an action that made Fire sink slightly, his knees buckling from the unexpectedly intimate gesture.

"Good. Well, you may speak with your Purblind about your new assigned room." As if the sensual moment shared between him and Fire had not happened, Papa II unceremoniously dropped his hand from Fire's shoulder, stepping back away with a smirk. "Continue to do well as you have been, and you may receive other rewards from me, my child. As for all of you..." He then turned to look at the other Ghouls in the room, who had been doing their best to not intrude lest they anger their Papa, but now all flinched as they were addressed. "...Do better."

It was only two words, said so simply, but they cut deep to all of the Ghouls. They had all been working so hard the past few weeks to gain their Papa's approval and yet it was Fire, the lowest of the low, who had earned his favour this day. The other four Ghouls silently fumed, but bowed their heads respectively and all murmured a monotonous, somewhat out of sync "Yes, Papa" to the man chiding them.

And then, as silently as he had approached, Papa II left the small room, the faint tapping of his shoes able to be heard all the way down the hall until they faded as he turned the corner to his part of the sanctum. Once it was certain he was out of earshot, Fire's Brothers all bombarded him with words. Some kind, some not, but all of them loud.

"What the hell, man?" As usual, Water was the first to speak out, his voice coming out in a still nervous squeak before he coughed to clear his throat. "We have been doing so much for him, and he says you are worthy of this?" He gestured about to the rest of his Brothers, a vague movement meant to mean that all of them had been doing--what he believed--to be more acceptable work than anything Fire had or could do.

"Yeahhh... Why does he like you so much, suddenly?" Earth pointed a suspicious finger at Fire, eyes narrowing a bit. Admittedly, he had not done too much to try to impress his Papa, but he had surely done more than Fire. ...Surely. "What, have you sucked his dick or something?" He laughed in the middle of his own joke, Water joining in as well, but he began to wonder after he said it if that were really true.

Fire yelped in anger, blood rising to his cheeks. "What?! No, I had not done that! I am not so low as either of you, you know." He was proud of himself for making such a comeback, and crossed his arms as he gave his Brothers a smug look.

Aether exhaled an annoyed breath, raising his hands up. "Hey now, there's no reason to be rude. Anybody." His eyes went from Water and Earth to Fire and back again. "We should be proud of our little Fire here. He finally did something right for a change, eh?" While what he said was a compliment wrapped in an insult, he truly was proud of his Brother. He was unsure of what he did to get their Papa to like him so much--hopefully not sucking his dick, he thought--but as long as his own rank remained safe and his Brother was being treated with respect, he was happy.

Air made his way to Fire and placed a hand on the Ghoul's back, giving him a rough yet proud series of pats. "Yes, we are happy for you." Air's comment was accompanied by a nod, and the rest were forced to agree with him. There was no point arguing when Air made a stance. He was usually right, anyway.

His Brothers then all congratulated Fire and at least pretended to be excited about his new room. In the end, save for Aether who was endlessly proud of his friend, the other Ghouls were all at least a little jealous. They were silently enraged that Fire would try to break their established ranks like this. But there was nothing that could be done. Fire had made it into Papa II's good graces, and in the short time since that first interview revealing their new symbols, he had proven that he was much more different--much better--than the Special Ghoul.

Or rather, he thought he had.


End file.
